Between June 1, 1980 and April 13, 1984, Kate McNeil was a regular on the soap opera As the World Turns where she played Karen Haines Stenbeck-Dixon until she departed the show and was written out on April 13, 1984. She then starred in WIOU and Bodies of Evidence in the early 1990s. McNeil was also cast as the wife of John-Boy Walton in the three television movies based upon the successful family drama of the 1970s, The Waltons.

McNeil has appeared in guest roles on a number of notable television series. Her credits include Designing Women, Babylon 5, Quantum Leap (1993, working with Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell), Ally McBeal, The X-Files and ER. She has also made the rounds on a number of CBS procedural series in a short span of time: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Without a Trace, NCIS, Cold Case, Veronica Mars, Bones, Grey's Anatomy, and Code Black are her most recent guest appearances.